Man robs store, fires at clerk

SANFORD — An armed man reportedly robbed a convenience store on High Street on Saturday night, fled with the cash from the register and fired a shot at the employee who pursued him as he got away.

According to Sergeant Craig Andersen of the Sanford Police Department, officers responded to 88 High Street — that’s the name and the address of the store — after receiving a report of an armed robbery on Jan. 25 at approximately 7:25 p.m.

“The store clerk had called 9-1-1 after a male wearing a ski mask entered the store and demanded money,” Andersen said in a prepared statement.

The suspect allegedly displayed a handgun during the incident and left on foot with money from the cash register. According to Andersen, the clerk followed the suspect across High Street and to the intersection of Harvard Street — at which point the suspect turned to the clerk and fired a shot. The clerk was not hurt in the incident.

“The male was last seen entering a vehicle and fleeing the area,” Andersen said.

The police department’s Facebook page described the suspect as a white male, six feet tall and 190 pounds. At the time of the robbery, he was wearing a red-and-black-checkered flannel jacket and a gray ski mask and displayed a silver handgun.

Sanford’s police detectives are currently investigating the incident. Anyone with information about the crime is asked to call the Sanford Police Department’s tip line at 324-9170, ext. 4. Contacting the police through the department’s Facebook page also is an option.

Saturday’s robbery makes the second time in less than two weeks that someone has entered a local store, flashed a gun and demanded money. On Friday, Jan. 17, a man entered the Lil’ General Store, located near the roundabout on Route 4, and unsuccessfully attempted to rob the place; he fled without any money.

The suspect in the Lil’ General incident remains at large. He is described as 5 feet, 5 inches tall. At the time of the crime, he was wearing a black ski mask, a dark blue hooded sweat shirt, purple gloves, dark pants and brown shoes. The police are asking anyone with information about this incident to call the tip line listed above.

On Wednesday, Deputy Chief Timothy Strout said that there is no indication that the two incidents are related in any way. He also stated that it is not advisable for tellers at banks and clerks at stores to refuse a robber’s demands.